For nearly three decades, Sandi Dollinger and her spouse, Bob, of Villa Park’s Astorville Antiques have been wheeling around and dealing in the antiques business. Expertise as a dealer comes from self-education, according to Dollinger. She shared some of the knowledge they have acquired.
Q. What is the broadest definition for a piece of antique furniture?
A. Most would accept anything that is 100 years old or more; however, purists insist that an antique should have been made before the age of manufacturing in the 1840s.
Q. What’s the difference between a collectible and an antique?
A. Time. Anything from 50 to 100 years old is a collectible, such as Art Deco-style furniture from the 1920s to the 1940s.
Q. What markings indicate authenticity?
A. Look at the interior or the back to see if the cuts from a saw were circular or straight; circular indicates the appropriate age for an antique. Check drawers for dovetailing, wood cut at angles, fit together and secured using glue.
Q. How can an amateur become a collector?
A. Attend antiques shows; look and listen; ask questions. Read. Go to auctions, estate sales, flea markets. Know what you are looking for. Remember: Buyer beware.
Q. Does restoration compromise an antique? Can you do it yourself?
A. Up to about 25 percent of an antique can be repaired and restored without destroying the piece. A handyman can refinish by stripping, sanding lightly, staining if desired and applying a finish, such as polyurethane.
Q. What’s hot in antique furniture these days?
A. People are furnishing their offices with antique desks, chairs and bookcases.
Q. Do antiques belong in museums, or should they be used?
A. As long as they are well constructed, use them. We raised our family with plenty of antiques around. The antiques survived.
